Peatlands abandoned after being exploited for horticultural materials can be characterized by soil-water deficits that challenge the establishment of appropriate plant species, thus rewetting is an important step to restoring them to naturally functioning ecosystems. A bog section of Bic-Saint-Fabien peatland near Rimouski, QC was vacuum-harvested for peat production and abandoned in 2000. Harvesting activity left topographic elevation differences across the harvested area, creating wetness gradients. In general, the site interior had more available water than peripheral regions. Bic-Saint-Fabien was cut down to minerotrophic sedge peat; therefore it was restored as a fen. Research for this study lasted four years, 2008-2011. A water budget was created for every year of study to determine the importance of different hydrological parameters at Bic-Saint-Fabien.The main loss of water was through evapotranspiration and the principal input was precipitation. The main difference in the water budget between study years was that pre-rewetting was climatologically wetter than post-rewetting. Despite more available water before rewetting, before-after-control-impact design ANOVA indicated the water table was significantly higher at the cutover area after rewetting. In 2011 a wetness gradient remained evident within the cutover section of the peatland; however the mean seasonal water table was close (within 20. cm) to the peat surface at all measured wells. An interior section of Bic-Saint-Fabien remained saturated for nearly all of 2011 and had mean seasonal water table of +2.4. cm, and volumetric soil moisture content and soil water pressure, measured 5. cm below the surface, of 86% and +4. mbar, respectively, compared to -15.4. cm, 67% and -13. mbar, respectively, at a nearby (~100. m) peripheral section. Systematic differences in wetness across the site suggest that a uniform prescription for vegetation re-establishment in the rewetted section may not be appropriate. © 2014 Elsevier B.V.